The danger of a national NHS database

Doctor's Diary: There's no point in participating in the NHS database when no
one is responsilbe for ensuring records are accurate or relevant.

By James Le Fanu

7:00AM BST 26 Jul 2010

A COUPLE of months ago, I learnt that a potted version of my medical details would soon be uploaded on to a national electronic database. This summary care record, or SCR, the accompanying leaflet informed me, was intended "to improve the safety and quality of patient care" by giving staff "easier access to reliable information about you". To which the short answer is, of course, "Thanks, but no thanks".

The most recent evaluation of this ruinously expensive project by an independent group of academics at University College London has found it to be not particularly effective at improving health care. But the show-stopper, as Professor Ross Anderson puts it in the British Medical Journal, is privacy. The record is designed to gather data from diverse sources, GPs' and hospital notes and imaging – but no one is responsible for ensuring they are accurate or relevant. Apparently tens of thousands of people with NHS smart cards could potentially access them and, though they must seek permission first, how that will work in practice is a mystery. Those who might not wish to participate in this project should phone 0845 603 8510, or download the necessary form from www.nhscarerecords.nhs.uk

The case of theman whose legs seem to be ageing faster than the rest of his body has prompted a range of helpful suggestions. Several readers believe it could be a side effect of medication, statins and beta blockers such as Atenolol being the main culprits for raised blood pressure.

"At times I struggle after just two miles on the flat," writes a reader who discontinued his statins for a week before embarking on awalking holiday.

The other possibility is that this might be the early stage of polymyalgia, the inflammatory muscle condition, or peripheral neuropathy, due to the abnormal functioning of nerves to the legs.

Overtiredness in the legs may be due to pressure on the nerves at the base of the spine or the reduced blood flow due to narrowing of the arteries, known as intermittent claudication.

This week's conundrum comes from Prof B J of north London, who suffered abnormal heart rhythm after having his teeth scaled. A colleague recalled that when it was customary to remove wisdom teeth under general anaesthetic, a disturbance of heart rhythm could occur several hours later. He wonders whether anyone has had a similar experience.

James Le Fanu's book 'Why Us? How Science Rediscovered the Mystery of Ourselves' is available in paperback from Telegraph Books for £9.99 plus 99p p and p. Please call 0844 871 1515 or go to books.telegraph.co.uk